Hitting the Town

Sep 1:

Again (as seems to be the trend) I woke up before I needed to, and spent time trying to fall back asleep. I eventually got up and got dressed. Breakfast was a piece of bread and cheese with lettuce and Milo.

On my way to the bus stop, I got my first “psst”. Some things apparently are the same wherever I go. I took the first bus that I saw which actually stopped and called me and waited for me as I trekked up the hill. I was supposed to meet with Sara in said bus as she should have been at the bus stop waiting for me, but when the bus was passing, she was still on her way down so I called her and told her I’d continue on that bus (since I didn’t want to pay more money by coming off) and she was cool with that. It must be mentioned that I noted the bus number because I may be hesitant to take it again- it played the (Jamaican) music too loud, and the conductor was trying cram all the sardines he could get into the tin. I waited for about 5 or so minutes at the terminus before Sara arrived. Then we started our journey into the town.

We first stopped and looked into some clothing store. Nothing really caught my attention, except the prices. We ventured further into the area and walked and looked. We went into Cave Shepherd, which apparently is a big department store with a lot of variety including books, clothing, electronics, etc. I bought The Rainmaker because I didn’t get to finish reading it back home and I really wanted to. Plus I wasn’t sure what I’d be doing next week and I needed something to occupy my time without internet. I paid BB$21.95 for said book. This place is expensive. I also bought a water bottle which I plan to use in the fridge either at home or school to keep my water/drink, Centrum, and antacid.

We left there and went to another plaza. We spent a while in there as Sara was trying to find jeans. I was hungry by this time but I do have enough energy to live off. She didn’t get anything she wanted so we left there and went to eat at Little John’s. The food was rather expensive (BB$14.25); the combo didn’t come with a drink so I had to buy that separate; the food was a bit on the bland side, but eatable none-the-less; their fries lacked something… I’ve been spoilt.

From food, we went to walk a little more. I ended up being able to buy a foldable basket for my dirty laundry for BB$6. We also went to a supermarket and I joined a long line to buy a box of cereal and oats. We left there and headed toward the bus terminus, but we stopped in the market along the way. Nice! It is clean, smells good, and looks very organised. Kudos to them!

I reached home at about 4.

I learnt today that it’s best to tag along with a tourist while shopping because they get their goods at the duty-free price which is significantly-enough of a difference in price. I also learnt that their “cheap” places such as the Cherish Cosmetique that I went to are like the wholesales in Jamaica, only way more cleaner and more high-tech. I also learnt that I can use my Magna card here, and I was able to use it at Cave Shepherd. And did I mention Barbados is expensive?!

I also had CouCou for the first time- it was made using breadfruit and salt beef (salt meat as they call it) and said breadfruit was mashed like potatoes. It was served with red herring. Not bad. Not sure I'm willing and adventurous enough to try said meal with cornmeal replacing the breadfruit and slimy ocra juice/gravy/whatever-they-call-it on top.

In the evening, I was finally able to get connected to the internet (Alleluia...). I feel MUCH better.